The US Open has produced a number of first-time major winners over the past few years, in a pointer to what has become golf’s changing of the guard.

In the past six years, the US Open, which this year will be played at the East Course at the Merion Golf Club , Pennsylvania, has been won by golfers like Webb Simpson, Graeme McDowell and Lucas Glover.

None of them were big names before their Open victory, yet all managed to register their first major triumph in a tournament that sits alongside the British Open, the US Masters and the US PGA as the sport’s most heralded events.

And it’s not just happening at the majors. Tiger Woods and a handful of others dominated the US PGA Tour 10 years ago, but now a raft of new players are regularly claiming titles.

This year, Derek Ernst, Russell Henley and John Merrick are just some of the golfers who have clinched their first PGA Tour victories, some of them after they had only played a handful of tournaments.

Brett Ogle, a former top Australian golfer and now an expert commentator with Sky Sports Radio, says the upheaval is being felt across the PGA Tour.

“Already this year, we have had so many players who are first-time winners,’’ Ogle says. “There is no question that the depth of talent in golf is greater than it has ever been.’’

Ogle says equipment and training have played major roles in the increasingly competitive golfing world, with the use of titanium and graphite triggering substantial benefits.

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“The new technology, for example, means the sweet spot on a club is bigger than it was. So even if you mishit a shot, the ball still goes a long way.

“The balls, too, have changed, so that they go longer and straighter.’’

Enhanced equipment means the less naturally gifted can match talent with the best.

But technology is not the only change. Young players here and overseas now have rigorous competition from an early age.

“It’s unbelievable that a 14-year-old from China like Guan Tianlang could make the cut at the US Masters,’’ Ogle says.

More opportunities

What else has changed since Ogle turned professional in 1985 is the proliferation of development options for golfers.

Locally, there are the foundations run by Jack Newton, Stuart Appleby and recent US Masters winner Adam Scott, as well as regular amateur junior golf tournaments and various state institutes of sport.

The opportunities to compete at a young age were more limited when Ogle and others were coming through the ranks. “We’re also seeing Nick Faldo work in China, and Greg Norman is involved in Korea. So there is a lot happening in Asia at the moment," he says.

While Ogle admires the breadth of talent in golf, he would not be surprised if this year’s US Open went to long-time No. 1, Tiger Woods.

“The way the Merion course is, it will favour players who can play a calculated game, who carefully plan where each shot will be going. This sort of course could be to Tiger’s advantage.

“Of the Australians, Adam Scott could have the best chance, provided he is putting well," Ogle says.

Scott’s strong iron game should bring him into contention. Ogle also likes the chances of Aussie John Senden if he, too, can get his putting in order.